Rise of the Firebird (22 page)

“Does he do that often?”

“Far more than I’m comfortable with. Are you ready to go?”

“Absolutely, I’ve officially worn out my welcome.” She handed him the invitation before checking that Ilya’s knife was sitting comfortably down the side of her new boots. How Cerise always knew her perfect shoe size was a mystery, but it didn’t trouble Anya half as much as the fact she also did it with her bras.

The address on Anya’s invitation led them to a grand Queen Anne mansion on Coliseum Street. It was painted white with French blue shutters. The fence and balcony were made of elaborate wrought iron work. Anya could feel power pulsing from it before she even stepped out of the taxi.

“They’re showin’ off for you, girl,” Mama Lya sniffed. “Silly fools.” Carrying their bags, they walked up to the gates cautiously. Harley stuck close to Mama Lya, twitching nervously. She’d done everything she could not to get involved with the Conseil Neutres. They had all come to see them through the gates, but Anya also knew that they were there to make sure they went through safely without any hindrance. Even Fox had a stash of throwing knives hidden about her. Anya focussed her tired mind as best as she could and slowly began putting up her walls.

Aramis shifted his pack from one shoulder to the other, trying to look calm. Anya was indifferent to the theatrics the Conseil Neutres were inflicting on them. When Anya had told him the change in plans, he’d immediately rung Silvian.

“I can’t believe after all this time you’re surprised by their bullshit. The Conseil Neutres has always been paranoid. It’s how they’ve managed to remain neutral for so long,” Silvian had said.

“But Anya is neutral! They are insulting the only person that will be able to help them
remain
neutral.”

“You need to stop trying to protect her, Aramis. Every time a schoolyard bully pushes her, you can’t step in. She’s more than capable of pushing back.”

“You’re right, I know. It annoys me that you are right. I’m her guardian by Álfr law, so it’s my job, but whatever you say. How is Budapest?”

Silvian was silent for a long time, “The Illumination keeps trying to make contact. Something about forgiving me for past transgressions, but only if I give up Anya. I told them to go…” Aramis blushed as Silvian described in visceral detail,
exactly
what they could go and do.

“That is an elaborate way of saying no,” Aramis replied.

“I’ve no intention of betraying our Shamanitsa. I’ve started looking into Vasya Melenko as well. Her appearance and her lack of identity isn’t sitting well with me.”

“If you let Isabelle know what you find, the message will get to us in Skazki. Søren will get it to us in the old ways.”

“Søren! How
is
your dashingly handsome brother? Has he forgiven you yet?”

“As much as he probably ever will.”

“He’s had a change of heart then. What miracle bought that about?”

“In a word? Anya.”

“Ahhh, Anya, I would say keep her safe, but I know you will.”

“You should focus on keeping yourself safe, Silvian. The Illumination and the Darkness will only take no for an answer for so long. If it gets too dangerous, come to New Orleans, the others will protect you.”

Silvian’s laugh was full and rich. “Oh, Aramis, still thinking I’m the one that needs protecting.”

“Consider it. That’s all I ask.”

“I will if the time comes. I haven’t been to the colonies for a hundred years. It might be a nice change.”

“Protect yourself.”

“You too, old friend.”

By walking into the Council building, Aramis felt like he wasn’t protecting himself or Anya. He moved to stand on one side of her. Soft fingers touched his, a touch to reassure him. She had locked down her magic tightly so that the Council wouldn’t see her as a threat. It was a smart move. As far as Aramis could see, they wanted to pick a fight.

“Relax, Aramis, we’ll be gone from here shortly,” Anya whispered. The door to the house opened and a tall, dark skinned woman walked out. She wore a neat two-piece suit with a red satin top, her dark hair pulled back in a French roll.

“Bitch,” Harley muttered earning a jab in the ribs from Mama Lya.

“Good morning and welcome, all of you,” the woman said, her high heels clicking down the stone path. She whispered something under her breath before she opened the gate for them. “Please come in. The Council will see you shortly. My, there are a lot of you, a veritable little army.”

“They are coming to say goodbye,” Anya said with a smile, big and bright to the point of being grotesque.

“You must be Anya, the Ruski witch.”

“Karelian Shamanitsa actually.”

“Not that it matters,” their hostess quipped.

“Cut it out, Lorraine,” snapped Mama Lya. “We don’t have the time for it.”

“Lya, I didn’t see you lurking there. Harley too? This is momentous.”

“Well, you see me now, Lorraine, so show us to them so we can get this circus over with.” Lorraine’s red lips pressed together tightly in frustration.

“Very well, though there’s no harm in keeping things friendly, Lya. If you would all please follow me.” Harley looked mad enough to spit. Fox touched her arm but Harley shrugged away from her.

Inside, the mansion was dark and cool. There was a pleasant smell in the air, like frangipani and roses, but underneath it, Aramis could detect the lingering meaty scent of decay. He could feel death in the walls and his already jittery nerves heightened. He glanced sideways at Izrayl and Hamish and they both nodded. They could smell it too. Ahead of him, Aramis watched Anya take Yvan’s hand. In the gloom of the shadowy hallway, their auras shimmered. Anya was trying to keep her magic hidden but it flared with the firebirds like a white shimmer.
Why haven’t you noticed that before, Aramis?
He rarely noticed auras, but that wasn’t an excuse.

Lorraine pushed on a pair of double doors that opened out into a courtyard built in the centre of the house. Standing solemnly next to a water feature were three men dressed in expensive suits and a coffee coloured girl wearing a blue cotton sundress wearing no shoes. She looked at them with a blank expression, her inner eye seeing something far from the garden around her. Lorraine bowed to them and indicated to the group that they should do the same. Aramis tried not to smile as every single one of them ignored her.

“Which one of you is the girl, Anyanka?” asked the huge Haitian on the end.

“That would be me,” Anya replied easily.

Anya hadn’t moved from her place between Aramis and Yvan. Izrayl, Katya, Isabelle and Hamish stood behind her. Mychal stood tall and threatening with Aleksandra to the side of them. If the Conseil Neutres had thought it would be easy to take them, they were quickly reconsidering. The flick of a lighter broke the awkward pause as Cerise lit a cigarette.

“There is no smoking in this place,” hissed Lorraine. Cerise looked bored as she blew a cloud of clove-scented smoke in the air, ignoring Lorraine’s indignation.

“You can see she isn’t going to be any trouble, Frankie,” Mama Lya said, Harley and Fox flanking her.

“Madame Lya, you know my name is Francois,” he said calmly as his black eyes snapped in annoyance.

“You will always be Frankie to me,” she replied. “Now that you’ve seen that she is no threat, would you please stop hindering her departure?”

“It’s nice to see you, Harley,” Francois said with a pained smile.

“Go fuck yourself, Frankie.”

“With respect, can we get this over with?” Anya interrupted. “I have time constraints.”

“Yes, yes, yes, a very short one,” the young girl, Adele, said as her eyes finally focussed on Anya, “and you have to go far, far, far in blackness. And Death will be there.”

“Tuoni isn’t so bad,” Anya shrugged, although the girl made her skin crawl. “You wanted us to open the gate here and that’s what we’ll do, but please stop getting in my way.”

“You must understand, Anyanka, the last time someone tried to break the rules in the city, it resulted in Katrina. We have a right to be cautious,” a pale, gaunt man said from beside Francois.

“You have a right, but I’ve broken no rules. I cleaned up a cat problem and that was all. Now, Aleksandra, please ready yourself to open the gate.” Anya gestured to her. Aleksandra looked confident as she joined Anya.

“You had best say goodbye to everyone,” Aleksandra said softly. “I can feel the way in already.”

“Good, are you still okay with them watching you do this?”

“It’s fine, Anya, let’s get out of here. It gives me the creeps.” Aramis stepped aside as Anya wrapped her arms around Hamish.

“Look after yourself, kiddo,” he whispered as he squeezed her. “Remember what I told you about keeping your fists up when someone comes at ya.”

“I will. Keep an eye on Belle.”

“Like I need it.” Isabelle hugged her and Anya felt the shapes of all the weapons under her coat.

“I might miss you,” Fox said as she pulled on the tip of Anya’s ponytail. “You’re the only person I have met that is as unco as me.”

“Thanks. Keep an eye on the Darkness and Illumination for me. Send them a computer virus or something.”

“Will do.”

“Watch your back,” Anya whispered into to Harley’s ear. “I don’t like the way these guys are looking at you. Don’t let them fuck with your business.”

“They wouldn’t know where to start, but I will.”

“Make sure you don’t wear Blue Jay out.”

“Ha! The old man loves it,” Harley gave her a dirty wink. Anya gave Mama Lya a polite nod, which was about as informal as they got. Mama Lya would protect them all. Cerise was looking at her red satin peep toes as Anya moved to her.

“Have fun in Skazki,” she said as she took the cigarette from her mouth.

“I doubt it. You know what Skazki is like.” Anya smiled up at her but Cerise struggled to return it. “Don’t feel bad about not coming, Cerise. I have plenty of body guards.”

“Be careful,” she whispered, “and don’t trust any bastard you come across. You are too trusting. Watch Yvan, don’t let the firebird fly away with him.”

“I would never let anything hurt him.”

“One day, Anya, you’ll realise what you have there. Don’t abuse it and stop ignoring it. You never know how long you will have it for.” Anya looked over Cerise’s shoulder where Yvan stood waiting patiently.

“I will keep him safe.” Cerise let her go and adjusted the collar of Anya’s shirt.

“I got you something to keep you warm,” Cerise took out of her bag Trajan’s dark red scarf that ran to black. She wrapped it around Anya’s neck. “Kick their asses for him.”

“With pleasure,” Anya replied, swallowing the massive lump in her throat.

“Now get out of here, sweetie.”

Anya turned away from her and back under the gaze of the Council. Lorraine had moved to stand next to Francois closely, but he was still staring at Harley.

“Do it, Aleki,” Anya said and Aleksandra shut her eyes. Almost instantly, Anya felt the shift of power in the air. She looked at Aleksandra’s fierce concentration. She was in awe of the natural talent that Ruthann had nurtured for only a few short weeks and turned it into something powerful.

The air in front of Aleksandra started to blur and heave. The Council stepped back as the fabric of the worlds opened in a glow of yellow light. Through it, Anya saw the heavy woodlands. A cold wind blew towards them and she could taste the magic in the air.

“Go, Anya,” Aleksandra said, her voice far away. Anya held out her hand to Yvan. He smiled as he took it and like the first time so long ago, they stepped through the shimmering light and into Skazki.

Harley watched the gates close and felt the air around them settle. The Conseil Neutres were whispering in amazement.

“That’s our signal to leave,” she said as she turned away.

“You got what you wanted,” Mama Lya told the Council. “You can breathe easier now knowing that you aren’t going to be challenged.”

“It was never about that,” Lorraine defended shrilly. “She was bringing death to the city.”

“This city already reeks of death. She didn’t bring it here,” Harley growled.

“Harley, please…” Francois interrupted. Isabelle gripped Harley’s arm hard enough to stop her from saying the words that were burning on tongue.

“You know what? Fuck it. None of you is worth the argument. Let’s go,” Harley said as she pushed her way towards the double doors. Cerise smirked as she fell into step beside her.

“These fools don’t even know what power is,” she said as she flicked her cigarette butt. Harley watched it sail through the air and land with a hiss in the koi pond. Hamish waited until they reached the doors before he moved from his post.

“Harley, wait!” Francois had made to follow them but Hamish’s revolver stopped him in his tracks.

“Just
don’t
, mate,” Hamish warned.

“How dare you pull a weapon,” Lorraine screamed.

“Oh, shut your mouth,” Hamish cocked his gun and stared Francois in the eye. “It’s pretty obvious if she wanted to talk to you she would, but she doesn’t wanna, so back off or I’ll make you.”

“Hamish, let’s go,” Isabelle said as she filed through the doors. Harley breathed a sigh of relief as they reached the curb outside.

“Are you okay?” Fox asked as Harley grabbed her bike helmet. Fox knew all about the drama she’d been through with Frankie and the Council in the past. It was the last thing in the world Harley wanted to talk about.

“Fine, I’m heading home. I’ll see you tomorrow.” Fox nodded, knowing better than to argue with her about needing space. Harley didn’t even wait to see Mama Lya before she started her bike and flew down the busy streets and back to the safety of Legba’s Ladies.

Harley was halfway through a bottle of tequila when there was a knock on her apartment door. She sank lower into the couch and pretended to be invisible. The door opened and Blue Jay walked in. His glance scanned the hole in the wall where she had punched it and back to the bottle in her hand. He sat down on the recliner in front of her without saying anything.

“Fox or Mama Lya?” she muttered.

“Isabelle.”